One/chane Takes Look Back At A Satisfying Year Of Service

Those were the two words Friday partygoers used most often in connection with the neighborhood organization ONE/CHANE.

About 320 people attended the organization's 10th annual meeting at the Hastings Hotel and Conference Center. Many guests said the agency is the driving force behind the rebuilding and revitalization of the northern end of the city.

``ONE/CHANE is one of the best agencies in Hartford. The board represents the community,'' said former Hartford Mayor Thirman Milner. ``They are community builders and change agents for humanity.''

Before a buffet dinner, Larry Charles, ONE/CHANE's executive director, listed the agency's past accomplishments and future goals. He mentioned plans to build two commercial projects and having opened a ONE/CHANE office in Pretoria, South Africa.

The nonprofit agency has completed nearly $10 million worth of rehabilitated or new construction in the northern part of the city in the past five years and will hold a ground-breaking ceremony this spring to mark the start of construction on a new pharmacy on Main Street, Charles said.

``I think it's great that they're making the neighborhood a better place for African Americans to live,'' said Kim Times, 27, an office assistant at the state Department of Revenue Services.

Charles included on the list of accomplishments that, during the summer, ONE/CHANE bought the buildingat 2065 Main St., where it is based. The comment drew loud applause from the audience.

He thanked Fleet Bank for helping the group get a mortgage, Aetna Inc. for funding environmental work at the site and the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving for buying a new heating system for the building.

``ONE/CHANE has spent years encouraging others to own their own homes,'' said Charles, ONE/CHANE's leader since 1993. ``Tonight we own our own office building.''

In April 1997, the agency dedicated Nelson Mandela Place, a 14-unit building on Nelson Street, which, like many of ONE/CHANE's projects, was built by an African American construction company.

``Everything we do must be community-owned,'' said the Rev. Michael Williams, chairman of the agency's board of directors. ``Not rented, not leased, but communty- owned.''

The agency presented several people with awards at the dinner, including Cynthia R. Jennings, an environmental organizer for ONE/CHANE. Jennings, a University of Connecticut School of Law student and candidate for the state 2nd House District seat, was recently named to the National Environmental Justice Advisory Council of the federal Environmental Protection Agency.

ONE/CHANE has worked with several neighborhood groups to greatly improve the city, said the Rev. Henry Price, a community activist.

``What ONE/CHANE has done is involve the community so it's part of the process,'' Price said. ``The vision is no good if the people don't back the vision.''

Grace Walker, 71, captain of the Pliny Street block watch, attended the event with her husband, Harold Walker, 66. A block watch member since the late 1970s, Grace Walker said the agency has helped many residents of the area.

The agency recently paid for a two-week class for her grandson to learn the asbestos removal business, she said.

``They do a lot for the neigborhood,'' she said. ``Homeowners are helping to build up the community.''